Morning,I have a thread to share on why I strongly believe the legal age of marriage in the UK must be raised and why it is a disability issue as much as a cultural one. Today felt apt as had I not have petitioned for a decree nisi at 25,I’d have been for married 19 years today..

Before I start this isn’t a finger pointing ,personal bitter thread as there isn’t any bitterness it’s a long time ago , just deep gratitude for my children, this thread is one to ensure that as a country we better protect disabled women and girls with law ..

In the U.K. today the legal age for marriage is 18 , a teen , if that isn’t young enough with parental consent you can have your child married off at 16 ,child marriage ...

When we hear of such young brides you may imagine arranged marriages, cultural backgrounds, power struggle between a child bride and a much older groom ,We seldom imagine similar aged couple with hidden disabilities, or a disabled girl marrying a man who will take over her care?

You may not imagine a teen mum who wants to make her family proud above all personal cost , or a youth who’s transitioning between being in care to being in first home and struggling without support ? They become a “cuckoo “ target ..

For those not familiar with the term “cuckoo “ Cuckooing is a practice where people take over a person’s home and use the property to facilitate exploitation. It takes the name from cuckoos who take over the nests of other birds ....

There are different types of cuckooing:

Using the property to deal, store or take drugs
Using the property to sex work
Taking over the property as a place for them to live
Taking over the property to financially abuse the tenant

(Ref Oxford City Council Website )

I once listened to a Autistic woman’s speech about how she had a marriage annulled as the groom forced her and her child to live solely in the utility room whilst he and his gang had the rest of the entire house HER and her child’s house ?! ...

I’ve also heard of Autistic girls being thrown out of cars as she is expecting a unplanned pregnancy out of marriage, and cannot see how marriage is safe for any 16 year old , let alone a disabled child ? ..

Marriage isn’t just about a white dress and a cake , it’s a binding life long legal contract which effects your personal freedoms ,finances and that of your children unless you are able to get out of it , which is costly exhausting and causes many people devastation ..

That is not a legacy to place on a child’s shoulders , not a future hurdle we should buckle to a disabled child who’s even less likely to have the support to escape the binds , not part of how the U.K. should be safeguarding our most vulnerable..

Thanks for listening

@UNWomenUK @Commonswomequ @GirlsNotBrides